Partnering for water

Water
problems of a different kind – members of the SIFE Memorial
and Harris Centre teams smile through the rain.

By Rebecca Cohoe

When was the last time you thought about where your water comes
from?
A new pilot partnership between SIFE Memorial and the Harris Centre
aims to change this province’s often ambivalent relationship
with the wet stuff.

Beginning next week, the two groups will be travelling the province
spreading the word on water.

SIFE will teach high school students why water is such an important
issue through interactive workshops, while employees of the Harris
Centre will gather insight and information on local water
challenges through a series of community hall focus groups.

Water issues are top of mind for the Harris Centre these days. Last
fall Memorial received an $800,000 grant from RBC, to be directed
through the centre, constituting the largest donation to an
Atlantic Canadian university that the bank has ever made.

When SIFE Memorial approached the centre about working together on
water-related projects, it was an easy decision.

“The students of SIFE Memorial have so much energy and
passion, it‘s inspiring,” said Karen Follett, knowledge
mobilization co-ordinator at the Harris Centre.

The goals of SIFE Memorial’s DROP water conservation project
are closely aligned with those of the RBC Water Research and
Outreach Fund, including a shared focus on rural communities.

“At Memorial, we deal with these issues in our studies, but
they really demand that you engage on a community-level," DROP
project manager, Anna Marie Megens explained.

It’s also a natural fit for the Harris Centre. As the
knowledge mobilization hub for public policy and regional
development at Memorial, making connections between the university
and the province’s regions is a daily activity.

And, it’s not just about making sure that Memorial research
makes it out to the people and regions who could benefit from it:
input from community members and groups is an important factor in
ensuring the relevance and direction of Memorial’s research
activities.

“The water tour is an opportunity to flip the familiar
top-down structure on its head. We’re asking questions,
gathering information and listening to the people who best
understand the water challenges in rural Newfoundland -- those who
live there,” said Ms. Follett.

Another key aspect of the tour is that it will focus not only on
municipal leaders, but also on high school students, all part of a
plan to encourage community involvement at an early age.

The better that young people understand the importance of water
issues, the more likely they will be to make informed choices about
water as they become the key decision-makers in their
communities.

According to Ms. Megens, getting the conversation started on water
makes sense on plenty of levels

“By doing this we can save money, we can save time and we can
improve our health and quality of life.”